Your doctor said you have IBS. But you are also suffering from insomnia? Your mentstruation is irregular? Your hands are cold, your eyes are dry, and your nails are brittle?
Do you know if you have IBS, then there may also be problems with your liver? And the problems may be bigger than what you think. According to TCM (traditional Chinese medicine), your liver, which is sad, angry (or even depressed), can be a factor that triggers your IBS.
Experts in this post
- Anthony William, the chronic illness expert, and originator of the global celery juice movement
- Robert Ko, a Professor in the Division of Life Science (the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology), served in the Chinese Medicines Board of the Chinese Medicine Council of Hong Kong
- Yu-ming Lee, a TCM practitioner earning his PhD from the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
Liver: the MD of your blood
How TCM views the liver is different from Western medicine, and that difference may be a key to understanding and healing your IBS.
In TCM, Liver is very different from the liver in Western medicine. It is not just an organ responsible for detoxing, but the Managing Director (MD) of the most important liquid in your body: blood. In other words, Liver, the MD, is the one who regulates the volume of blood in your body, and she does it in two ways:
- When you are active, Liver ‘orders’ blood to go to different parts of your body.
- When you are inactive, Liver ‘commands’ blood to go back.
So think about it. What will happen if Liver cannot perform her first task? You will get cold hands (as blood cannot reach there). And for females, you will experience irregular menstruation as the volume of blood is out of control by your MD.
However, why does Liver not do her jobs in the first place? What makes the MD on strike? And what does this have to do with your IBS?
Before answering the above questions, you must have an idea of the most important concept in TCM: Qi, and Liver Qi in particular.
Enter Qi (and Liver Qi)
Qi, in traditional Chinese medicine, is the vital but invisible energy flowing within your body. Vital and invisible?
- Vital as it performs the three functions of nourishing and maintaining organs and tissues, and facilitating metabolic processes.
- Invisible as it is like different transparent trains running in your whole body that it is present in every organ.
And Qi that found in your Liver is Liver Qi, the energy that makes Liver works and do the job of regulating your blood.
Qi blocked: sickness
Your Liver is such a good Managing Director that she works 24/7, even when she does not feel well. Right, she still goes back to office to perform the job of blood regulating even if she is sick. In TCM, this sickness of MD means Liver Qi, which should be flowing freely, is blocked, obstructed, and stagnated.
Well, as an IBS person, you may ask a question: What does Liver Qi blocked have to do with your IBS?
Trigger of IBS
Liver Qi blocked is a trigger of IBS. In TCM your Liver and the digestive system are ‘connected’, which means the Qi blocked in Liver will go to your intestines. With excessive energy (Qi), your large intestine will over react and that overreaction causes you to rush to the washroom.
This is what TCM practitioners called Liver invading Spleen (the digestive system). Simply stated, your IBS may be caused by Liver Qi affecting the digestive system.
Why is Liver Qi blocked?
In a word, what you have learnt so far is:
- Liver Qi regulates your blood
- Your IBS can be caused by Liver Qi blocked
Stated differently, if your Liver Qi was not blocked, then no Liver Qi would be invading your digestive system and you would not be suffering from IBS.
So, what on earth causes Liver Qi blocked? Or, is there any root cause of your IBS? If there is, what is it? According to Dr. Lee (a TCM practitioner), the root cause of your IBS is emotion, the theme of next post.
